LOVEASHFORD
inside THE SCHOOL :
ASHFORD SCHOOL
Inspiring Minds for 125 Years
SET BACK FROM ASHFORD ’ S LOWER HIGH STREET , BETWEEN THE COUNTY HOTEL AND THE NATWEST BANK , PASSERS-BY MIGHT SPOT A THREE-STOREY TERRACE IN WHICH , IN THE YEAR 1898 , MRS MURIEL THIMANN OPENED THE MODERN HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS .
Seven Monarchs , a site move , two world wars , a change of ownership , a merger , coeducation and 125 years later , Ashford School finds itself celebrating its quasquicentennial .
Under the stewardship of Miss Edwards , the school grew until it soon burst the banks of its original premises , subsequently assuming its current site at Alfred House on East Hill . From there , under the headship of the inimitable Lilian Brake , the premises of the school expanded at breakneck pace ; Somerville , Coronation and Cranmer were all added to the original manor house . The burgeoning school , increasingly an academic powerhouse housing an army of venetian striped blazers that Brake left behind by the mid-1950s , suddenly bore much closer resemblance to the modern school than the cramped townhouse of those distant early years .
Under Miss Nightingale came modernity and the school shot into the second half of the century with a raft of now familiar buildings ; Brake , Jubilee , the Refectory , New Alfred and the Octagons . With this expansion came huge success . Ashford became a byword for academic success , forward thinking and high standards in girls ’ education .
Three miles away from East Hill , in the rural village of Great Chart , opened a small proprietary prep school , often for the brothers of Ashford girls . Friars
School was born . In its first twenty years , the school grew into a successful prep , and with its stunning original 1st XI pitch on the site of the current car park , developed a name for cricket as well as an allround education . Under the headship of John Stevens , the school grew , added a pre-prep department in the 1980s and began to admit girls .
In 1994 the Ashleys took up the reins and led the school through a period of significant growth , with the Friars Hall , DT , HE and Music suites all completed during this period , as well as the new swimming pool .
In 2005 the governors of Ashford Girls and Friars School took the decision to take the bold step of combining the two former schools to form a relaunched co-educational Ashford School . Changes were immediate . The junior school on East Hill vacated and relocated to Great Chart . At Friars , education to year 8 transferred to the senior school and the days of Common Entrance ended . Interactive whiteboards appeared everywhere – with the palpable sense that the 21st century , and indeed a new era had arrived !
In the years since , the pace of change has been breakneck – the Friars site has been significantly redeveloped with the addition of the new prep school building , Harper Hall , The Stables Nursery and the new pitches , Astro and pavilion . Over on East Hill , the Atrium , Somerville Library , the Sports Centre and refurbishment to the teaching accommodation has come . Academics have gone from strength to strength , sport has expanded to place us among the most competitive schools and performing arts have developed into a significant point of pride and distinction . Ashford School is an exciting place to be in the 2020s .
Ashford School in 2023 has the luxury of an illustrious past but has its eyes firmly on the future . The next year is a great opportunity to celebrate the life of the school past , present and future , with a range of events , from balls to summer lunches , to an open Vivaldi gala concert . We would strongly welcome all members of the Ashford and Friars diaspora who wish to come back and see their old school , and would very much like to ensure that as many of you as possible have the opportunity to be part of the journey to come .
www . ashfordschool . co . uk
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